Jesse Ellis, 20, of Coral Springs, was driving a small center-console boat, pulling Bieszczek and Nicholas R. Messier, 19, in a tube behind him near the 11000 block of Southwest First Street in Coral Springs. Investigators did not know why the tube collided with a rocky area along the shore, Ferraro said.

Messier was taken to North Broward Medical Center and was in stable condition Sunday evening. Ellis was not injured.

"A serious injury on tubes is not uncommon," Ferraro said. "And this is how it happens, the tube collides with something."

The Coral Springs Police Department arrived on the scene first, but the FWC is investigating the incident.